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Worksheets2nd Version German Political System Quiz
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 10mins
Under the Basic Law, which scenario would MOST clearly violate the principle of “chancellor democracy”?
A minister refusing to implement cabinet policy
The Bundesrat rejecting a bill
Coalition partners negotiating a formal agreement
The Bundestag introducing amendments to a government bill
If the Bundestag passes a no-confidence motion without naming a successor, what happens?
The chancellor is immediately removed
The president must appoint a temporary chancellor
The motion is invalid and the chancellor stays
The Bundesrat must select the new government
What institutional feature most prevents Germany from returning to Weimar-style party fragmentation?
Federalism
Proportional representation
The 5% threshold
Bundesrat veto powers
In practice, which institution most shapes the content of German bills BEFORE they reach the Bundestag?
Bundestag party leaders
Federal ministries and civil servants
Bundesrat committees
The Federal President
If a federal law requires state implementation and the Bundesrat rejects it, what occurs?
The Bundestag overrides the Bundesrat
The bill cannot pass
The Constitutional Court automatically reviews it
The federal president resolves the dispute
Germany’s federalism makes the chancellor powerful because:
States share legislative supremacy
States depend on national tax transfers
Administration is decentralized but policymaking is centralized
The Bundesrat is dominated by the chancellor’s party
What is the biggest structural reason German coalition governments are more stable than British ones?
Majority coalitions are constitutionally mandated
Coalition contracts bind parties to negotiated agendas
The president enforces unity
The Bundesrat punishes coalition disunity
A two-party coalition collapses after a dispute. What must constitutionally occur before a new chancellor can be appointed?
The Bundesrat nominates a replacement
Bundestag elects a new chancellor with an absolute majority
The Federal President dissolves parliament
A national referendum is held
Germany’s system prevents executive drift mainly by:
Strong judicial review
High ministerial turnover
Weak party discipline
Prime ministerial question time
Why is the German president influential despite weak formal powers?
Controls the Bundesrat
Represents national unity and crisis leadership
Appoints the cabinet independently
Delivers binding legislative directives
Which scenario most strongly reflects neocorporatism?
Policy negotiated between business, labor unions, and the state
MPs directly negotiating trade agreements
Regional governments vetoing labor reforms
Parties absorbing interest groups
Why do German MPs have less autonomy than British MPs?
Constituency service is prohibited
Party-list voting increases party discipline
MPs serve shorter terms
Germany outlaws backbench rebellions
Which event most increased chancellor dominance after 1990?
Enlargement of the EU
Integration of eastern Länders increased federal-level complexity
Adoption of the euro
Decline of the SPD
Why are German parliamentary debates less contentious than in Britain?
MPs fear judicial review
Bills are pre-negotiated in committees and ministries
The speaker controls floor access rigidly
The Bundesrat sets agenda time
A party receives 10% of the national vote but wins zero district seats. It receives…
No representation
Seats proportional to 10%
One seat for each 5%
Whatever number the Bundesrat allocates
Which condition must be met for an early election?
The president orders it
The chancellor loses a confidence vote that they purposely initiate
A supermajority of the Bundesrat demands it
Parties pass a dissolution act
The most powerful check on chancellor authority is:
Backbench rebellions
Coalition partners
British-style question time
The monarchy
East–West economic divergence persists chiefly because:
Federal taxation favors eastern states
Investment patterns differ significantly after unification
East Germans vote CDU at higher rates
The Bundesrat blocks eastern bills
Why are German interest groups more influential than in Britain?
They are constitutionally mandated actors
They integrate into policymaking through corporatist consultation
They fund political campaigns directly
They sponsor MPs
Which institutional feature ties Germany more closely to consensus politics?
Constructive no-confidence
First-past-the-post
Two-party dominance
Ministerial turnover
